15-05-2025
GU-Q graduate Brian Wibowo named Yenching scholar at Peking University
Tribune News Network
Doha
Brian Cody Wibowo, a graduate of Georgetown University in Qatar (GU-Q), has been selected as one of 114 scholars worldwide to join the 2025 cohort of the Yenching Academy of Peking University, one of the most competitive and renowned postgraduate programmes in the world.
With an acceptance rate below three percent, the programme attracted thousands of applicants worldwide and enrolled students from more than 40 countries to pursue an interdisciplinary master's degree focused on China's changing role on the global stage.
Hailing from a small town in Sumatra, Indonesia, Brian built an academic and advocacy career at Georgetown that spanned institutional reform, regional research, and global policy dialogue. Graduating cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service in International Economics, Brian was known for his campus thought leadership and exceptional research focusing on diasporic governance, development policy, and Southeast Asia-China relations.
As a Kalorama Fellow through Georgetown, he conducted comparative fieldwork on Chinese clan houses in Penang and Medan, analysing their roles in mediating identity and authority under colonial rule.
He presented this research at the 2025 Yale Undergraduate Research Conference, where he was awarded second place in humanities research.
He also participated in Georgetown Global Dialogues, facilitating critical conversations on post-development, degrowth, and the future of political economy.
As a member of GU-Q's Honour Council, Brian worked with his peers to co-author the university's first AI academic policy, developing ethical frameworks for student use of generative technology.
As one of two students selected to represent Georgetown as a U7+ Alliance of World Universities Fellow, at the NEXT Milan Forum, he co-developed policy recommendations on legacy admissions and international student equity, later reviewed by Group of Seven (G7) university leaders.
Reflecting on the experience, he wrote, 'While the challenges we face are undoubtedly complex and deeply rooted, there is an emboldening realisation that progress is possible when each of us recognises our integral role in shaping a more just, equitable, and sustainable future for all.'
Outside the university, he co-founded a grassroots initiative in Sumatra focused on food insecurity, disability inclusion, and community-based education.
The initiative launched mobile health outreach to over 30 underserved villages, built food banks during the pandemic, and established scholarship pipelines for children with invisible disabilities.
He later led national research and reform efforts as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce, focused on disability policy and educational equity.
